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Cloud computing, sometimes known as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), is well established. The operational expenditure versus the capital expenditure advantages are well understood and accepted, as are the benefits of scalability, on-demand capacity and the removal of infrastructure and hefty upgrade costs. Even the terminology, once part of the exclusive language of IT professionals, is now part of everyday business-speak, and even trickling into consumer vernacular via advertising and marketing campaigns.

Despite the mass awareness of the utility of cloud computing, the world of wealth and investment management has been slow to adopt the cloud, with many organizations still running on, and even implementing, traditional on-premises software applications.

Recent industry news has highlighted several very high-profile project failures, many of these in wealth and investment management. In the clear majority of cases, inflexible and outdated legacy technology was to blame. Even where projects have succeeded, the timescales are often shocking, with implementations lasting several years. These shortcomings underscore the need for a smarter, more efficient, cloud-based digital platform.

The InvestCloud approach

Emerald, InvestCloud’s cloud-based Modeling, Accounting and Custody (“MAC”) system, can help your organization to operate more efficiently and effectively, and benefit from InvestCloud’s rapid and low-risk implementation approach.

With cloud solutions from InvestCloud’s digital platform, implementation is fast. InvestCloud’s PWP (Programs Writing Programs) technology aids rapid configuration. InvestCloud does the heavy lifting, including managing the infrastructure – leaving the business teams who rely on the software free to ensure that it’s configured correctly and fit for purpose.

InvestCloud’s approach ensures that your organization will never have to endure another traditional software rollout to get its hands on the latest functionality. Users get instant access to the latest innovations without having to worry about installing new software or hardware. Emerald is continuously updated, not only to release new features, but also in light of compliance and regulatory enhancements, security updates, usability improvements, patches and bug fixes. This ensures state of that art features for your clients and advisors such as client portals, advisor portals, client communication, client reporting, and financial mobility.

Flexibility and agility

Modern, successful businesses are good at coping with change. InvestCloud makes this flexibility easy. Extending the capabilities of your system by adding new functionality from InvestCloud’s suite of apps is simple and fast because all InvestCloud modules are designed to work together. It’s easy to add new features and functionality to your digital platform such as tools for client reporting and client communication, as and when required, without having to integrate software from different vendors.

For customers wishing to develop their own customer-facing propositions, InvestCloud Emerald is fully API enabled. This allows our clients to focus on building their unique algorithms and client portals without having to re-invent the wheel building their middle- and back-offices.

Reducing costs & risk

In an increasingly competitive market, the cost of middle- and back-office technology has a direct impact on your organization’s bottom line. With lower infrastructure and maintenance costs, InvestCloud Emerald can significantly reduce the percentage that’s devoted to the middle and back office. This means you can invest in other areas while having access to the market’s most modern trading, accounting and settlements system. InvestCloud also takes on responsibility for the hardware infrastructure and security, which means lower explicit and implicit costs for our clients.

InvestCloud’s cloud pricing model allows maximum flexibility over traditional approaches. Extending the capabilities of InvestCloud Emerald can easily and rapidly be achieved from the InvestCloud suite of products. This saves time, cost and lowers your exposure and risk. Emerald is delivered using a SaaS model and is priced on a subscription basis. This gives a clear advantage over traditional, on-premises software deployments.

InvestCloud Emerald allows you to quickly deploy a modern modeling, custody and accounting platform that delivers the latest functionality and capabilities like fractional-share dealing, all with lower investment risk and great flexibility. This makes it a perfect fit for a re-platforming project.